Havana’s International Drum Festival 10 years sounding drums

Havana’s International Drum Festival Guillermo Barreto in Memoriam will celebrate its 10th edition on March 8-13 with the best of Cuban and foreign percussion players.

The venue for the opening ceremony will be the Mella Theater and there will be a tribute to the 10 years of the Latin Grammy Award to the album “La Rumba Soy Yo”, the first phonogram which won this award in the category of Folk Music. Los Muñequitos de Matanzas, the National Folk Assemble of Cuba, Klímax y Luis Carbonell will participate.

One of the best moments of the festival will take place on March 9. Heavyweights of Cuban percussion like Enrique Plá, Giraldo Piloto (event chairman), Oliver Valdés, Rodney Barreto, Ruy Adrian Lopez-Nussa will perform.

Meanwhile, best female percussionists will perform on March 10 at the Astral Theater. The guests are Yissy Garcia, Anacaona; Nail Sosa, David Blanco and his Group, Juana Veliz, and Habana C’s Yuleisis Greenidge.

The Rumba Palace will be the venue for the traditional drum competition. This site promotes the percussive interpretation without age limits or academic knowledge because, as noted by Piloto, Tata Guines, Chano Pozo and Guillermo Barreto were very important Cuban percussionists and didn’t attend art schools.

Competitors from Chile, Mexico, and Colombia will also participate.

The screening of John Walker’s documentary “A drummer’s dream” and the jazz nights at the Occidental Miramar Hotel will complement the activities of the festival.